This invention is related in general to digital networks and more specifically to the use of Internet Protocol (IP) authentication information in layer-3 (L3) multipoint tunneling in a system using wireless access points.
Digital networks have become an invaluable resource for many types of communication and data transfers. The growing popularity of wireless networks is presenting new challenges in the design of fast, efficient networks. Although users are provided the ability to “roam” about increasingly larger areas, such mobility can also impact network security, speed, reliability and other concerns.
Mobile nodes (MNs), such as cell phones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and other devices can move in and out of wireless range of various stationary access points (APs). Access points, such as a wireless router or switch, while largely stationary may also be taken from, or put onto, the network from time-to-time. The MNs and APs register with a wireless domain services (WDS) process that keeps track of their attributes and locations for purposes of authenticating, routing, and other network services. The WDS data is used by a data path control to establish a data path between MNs and a route device (e.g. a central switch (CS)) for centralized data forwarding.
One concern of mobile network connectivity and switching is to provide continuous services and data flow when an attribute of an MN or AP changes, such as when an MN moves from one AP area to another, or when an MN or AP attribute is updated. In such cases it may take a few hundred milliseconds, or even seconds for the MN location information to be updated and propagated to the data path control, CS and other components of the system. In some cases the MN may need to re-authenticate to a remote authentication server (AS). Additional delays may be encountered before communications to the MN and/or AP can be continued, such as using address resolution protocol (ARP) to update forwarding tables.